To report this receptionist?

Grow up. People like you are tedious.

I agree with you about there being a problem at all levels (especially) within the NHS. But this is why it is even more important for patients to be feeding back their experiences.

Many GP services, although funded by the NHS, are run as independent entities. So poor management is much easier to identify if patients are highlighting it because there is no where to hide.

Yes, I completely agree with this.

However, there are so many poor managers these days. New staff get chucked and expected to cope with little or no training. Existing staff bear the brunt. Rather than get support they get told off for getting hacked off with with high workloads and poor processes.

Been there. I don't put up with it anymore and would walk away.

And that's absolutely fine. In that case, she could have said that. The vast majority of people understand that people who are new in a job need to be trained. But patients aren't mind readers and when they are full of cortisol and adrenaline they really don't always have the capacity to distinguish between a trainee and an incompetent, surly staff member. A simple, "I'm so sorry for your wait. I'm a new staff member and I'm still getting the hang of this computer system. Please bear with me while I grab someone to help me get you sorted more quickly", would have solved all of this.

Considering staff turnover is high in this line of work and training is on the job she might have been new.

She’s in the wrong job. It happens unfortunately.
Just be glad you’re not a sour puss yourself.

You sound exceptionally entitled

She literally couldn't do the task she was asked to do and had to be helped. She didn't acknowledge any of this. That's literally poor service.

In her shoes I would have acknowledged the patients wait. I would have acknowledged that I was struggling to find her information. I would have acknowledged I needed to get help from another member of staff. And then I would have apologised.

Framing it as "reporting her" is wrong. But as a manager I'd want to know this happened so I can support her to provide better service and to make sure she's ok.

I don't think it was poor service, is the point you missed. You think it was poor service because she wasn't smiley and soothing.

When asked if you would be happy to accept poor service you said that you would be happy if they were doing it "to the best of their ability". But not everyone's ability level is the same. The receptionist in the OP may have been working to the "best of her ability" but that is not good enough for the role. Not everyone can do every job. That's ok.

I hope that's clearer for you and that you manage to find a less aggressive way to express your confusion in future. It's always ok to ask for clarification if you don't understand what someone has said.

Are you high?! You think a surgeon working to the best if their ability is somehow bad? A trained expert doing their best work is to your mind a negative? And somehow deadly?
I have zero idea what you are wittering about here

There is a difference between not smiling and scowling. Humans are capable of many, many facial expressions. Most people who work in customer facing roles should have a warm, neutral expression. No one with any sense would expect her to be grinning from ear to ear... In the context of a GP that would be inappropriate. But it is also inappropriate and unprofessional to make patients or clients feel uncomfortable with a negative expression. It really is the most basic part of this job.

I also don't believe that you do expect people to do a job "to the best of their ability". If I decided I wanted to be your surgeon the "best of my ability" would kill you. If you paid a hundred pounds to go and see a concert pianist but when you got there it was Grade two student playing to "the best of their ability", you would ask for a refund. I bet you actually want people to do a job that they are adequately trained for, with the appropriate skills and that they are temperamentally suited for.

And when people in customer facing roles apologise they are not apologising for the policies and structures that have caused the problem. They are acknowledging the clients' negative experiences, showing empathy and opening up a conversation which is likely to result in a better experience for the patient and the receptionist.

To repeat others before, OP is not complaining about the lack of a smile. I am just going to ignore you now as you are exceptionally rude. There is no need to be offensive and swear at someone just because they differ from your view. Maybe consider whether you need some kind of therapy to deal with what appears to be anger/aggression issues. Good luck

I expect people to do their job to the best of their ability. I do not expect them.to apologize from r things outside their control and I don't expect them to smile if they don't want to.smile.

It's really fucking weird that so many of you expect that to the point that you think it's reasonable to make an actual complaint that she didn't smile enough. Creepy AF.

And I'm literally the opposite of the difficult customer, clearly. You're very confused as to what difficult means. Im the one asking for nothing, you're the ones demanding specific facial expressions!!

this

She wasn't just "not warm enough", she wasn't able to complete the task without help and offered no customer service. As an employer and service provider I would want to know about this.

1. So that I can check in and make sure she has received all the training she needs to carry out the tasks of her role.
2. To check in with her and make sure she is emotionally coping with what can be a very difficult and triggering role, and if not, to provide her with the support required or sign-post her to more appropriate support.
3. To understand if there is a wider pattern of behaviour within the reception team and to keep an eye on the culture there.

I welcome complaints. If someone complains directly to me then I have the opportunity to do something to fix it both for the staff as outlined above, but also for the client or patient. If they don't tell me, they tell their friends, they tell the town facebook group, they tell Mumsnet and I don't get to fix it.

Reporting her for not being warm enough would be a huge overreaction. Not everyone has amazing days all the time, but it wasn’t her fault you were so tight for time that a normal, fairly short delay made things very difficult for you. Just let this one go and next time leave yourself more time for the job.

And in this case (according to OP) she was neither. If being compassionate, efficient and professional is akin to "doing tricks" then the NHS is a much sorrier state than I thought.

Do you expect people to deal with you reasonably or are you happy to be dealt with in an offhand/unconcerned/uncaring manner? We are talking about the nhs here. As far as I know, everyone in nhs has training to have some empathy for another person. I hope you are not in any job that has to show someone else any element of concern. You present as the kind of "difficult person" I had to deal with in my job but I still treated them correctly.

@Technonan I'm not rural - I'm in a city. Even when my blood needs doing for my Manchester hospital, it's a form

I disagree. As a first point of contact for distressed people it IS her job to be compassionate, warm and friendly. It is not her job to be a Pollyanna and in fact that would be entirely inappropriate. I work in a similar field and if someone couldn't cope with being front line in this way, I would move them out of that role and into an administrative role behind the scenes. Not everyone is equipped for it and that's ok.

The Receptionist needs to be efficient and professional, thats all.
She's not a performing seal

Gosh

Christ no, I couldn't cope with all you whiners and foot stampers, I don't deal with people. People are awful.